The field of the disclosure relates generally to cooling and thermal management, more particularly, to systems, devices and methods of operation for heat sinks/fins and extended surfaces thereof.
Conventional electronics typically generate a significant amount of heat during routine operation. If not managed, such generated heat may accumulate, thereby leading to a rise in temperature and eventual damage or failure of components within the electronics (e.g., processors, integrated circuits, or the like). For example, some estimates indicate that for every 10° C. (18° F.) rise in temperature, the life of the components may decrease by about 50%. In addition, the heat generated is waste energy, owing to inherent inefficiencies associated with converting input electrical energy to useful work. As such, managing the generated heat thus becomes imperative to ensuring the safe and reliable operation of the designed components. Moreover, such heat (thermal) management is a critical bottleneck in achieving improved power density and/or miniaturization of electronics.
Conventional thermal management mechanisms typically include providing one or more thermal paths configured to allow for a flow of heat away from temperature sensitive components. For example, in devices that utilize, for example, silicon or silicon based materials, heat generated at the silicon traverses through various components in a thermal path, such as the chip case, thermal interface material, heat spreader, wedgelock, outer chassis, or the like, before ultimately being rejected to the surrounding air.
Typically, fins (extended surfaces made of high thermal conductivity material and are commonly integral to the prime surface) are utilized to facilitate such a rejection of heat and/or increase a transfer of heat to the surrounding air. When properly designed, the fins enhance the surface area available for convection without a significant temperature difference between the base (prime surface) and tip of the fins, thus increasing the efficiency of the fins. However, the inventors have observed that conventionally configured fins have limited effectiveness and are insufficient for applications where the electronics are subject to varying requirements or are exposed to dynamic or changing environments, for example, such as in aircraft electronics or avionics.
Therefore, the inventors have provided embodiments of an improved passive cooling structure.